On the other hand, I have always believed that the park stifles economic development in the park, that residents of the park made a sacrifice by living within the blue line. However, Phil Terrie argued that the rest of central and upstate New York is equally, if not more, economically depressed. As we read earlier in the semester, all agricultural or industrial initiatives in the Adirondacks failed. Farms, mines, and lumber companies all tried and failed to make a go in the Adirondacks, and they failed before the creation of the park. Thus, it seems to me that, by the time the park was created, residents didn't have anything to turn to but tourism. And the park (as frustrating as its regulations might be) has promoted tourism in Adirondack towns over other rural New York towns. Here is a map of economically distressed counties in New York State. It shows that economic issues also afflict many counties outside of the Adirondack Park and that two counties in the Adirondack Park are not classified as economically distressed.
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
Thoughts on Phil Terrie
I personally found Phil Terrie's talk to be very interesting, informative, and beneficial. I could have listened to him lecture for another hour. In class yesterday, we criticized him a bit for being biased, but I didn't feel that detracted from the value of the presentation. First of all, he visited us not as a professor but as a public speaker, so I expected him to present his opinion on the APA and current legal disputes in the park. Also, his concern for the environment certainly trumped his concern for the economic vitality of Tupper Lake, but I didn't feel that he disregarded the people of Tupper Lake. He didn't advocated barring all development on the plot in Tupper Lake but instead proposed a compromise: He said that he would accept the plan as long as the homes were clustered. He also suggested that the development was a bad business plan, so perhaps he felt that the economic benefits would not make up for the damage to the environment.
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I also enjoyed Phil Terrie's talk. Even though he did maybe present a biased look, I believed his points were very well thought out and made a lot of sense. I understand that the Adirondack Park cannot be in economic distress and the residents do need to make money somehow. However, the main purpose of the park, in my opinion, should be to maintain its pristine wilderness that is now so hard to come by.
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